Apparatus for disinfecting books, etc.



W. H. RADEMAEKERS. APPARATUS FOR DISINFECTING BOOKS, ETC.

' APPLlCATlON FILED mums, 1916.

r m a MM 9 v 5 I w. M @W d \m Z a WILLIAM H. RADEMAEKERS, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

APPARATUS FOR DISIN-FEO'IING BOOKS, ETC.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

Applicationfiled June 16, 1916. Serial No. 103,987.

ments in Apparatus for Disinfect-ing Books,

Etc, of which the, following-is aspecification.

.In public libraries, halls of record, etc,

and all places where thin laminated sheets are promiscuouslyl handled, especially in those in which-booksaare taken out and put into circulation among the. general public, in libraries schools, etc., it has long been recognized by librarians. school boards. and especially by boards of health, that they were a very great source for the wide dissemination of contagious and infectious diseases of all forms; and that for the preservation of the public health, and the prevention of epidemics of such diseases, proper methods, processes and apparatus for the complete and perfect disinfection andsterilization of such articles composed of laminated leaves, in a cheap, quick and efiicient manner, that, could be operated by unskilled labor, would be of the greatest value to the preservation of the public health.

To bring about such perfect and complete disinfect-ion in such cheap and eflicient man? ner is the main object of the apparatus I have herein disclosed. This I have brought about by my improved disinfecting apparatus herein first disclosed, described and claimed.

In disinfecting laminated articles or structures, such as books, etc., it'has been the custom to pack them onshelves in large quantities in aroom-capable of being tightly sealed, and. then to fill. such room for a number of days with a disinfecting vapor or gas such as formaldehyde. But this process is very unsatisfactory, by reason ofthe fact that this operation of necessity takes up a large space, that the booksor. other articles for aconsiderable period of time can not be used, (a verly great detriment in all cases, especially in that of public record books andlibraries) during which the books, etc., are not accessible to the general pub: lie, and also the fact that the disinfectant does not thoroughly penetrate. throughout all the laminations-of the various'books or other articles,

In order to bring about, a perfect disinfection it isabsolutely essential that thedis;

infectant should be one that will not unduly stain or in any manner deteriorate the leaves or laminae disinfected.

. The great fundamental, essential of my inventiomlics in throwing between the leaves of a book or pack lamina: of any form, any suitable disinfectant, whether suchdisinfectant be powder, gas or nebulized vapor, or a combination thereof; and I accomplish this by fluttering the leaves of the bookor pack ofv laminae to be disinfected, and simultaneously, throwing such disinfectant throughout the laminated body of leaves or book, while being so fluttered, in any manner and by any apparatus that will bring about the completedisinfect-ion by such disinfectant, to the extreme back of the book or pack of laminae.

My said improved apparatus for disinfecting books isfully shown, described and claimed in the following specification, of whichthe accompanying drawing forms a part, wherein similar letters or numerals of reference designate like or equivalent parts wherever found throughout the several views. and in which 2- Fig. 1 is a front perspective view in elevation of my-said improveddisinfecting apparatus for books and other laminated articles.

Fig. 2 is a=sideview thereof partially in substantially vertical section, looking from the left of Fig. l in the'direction of the ar- Fig. 3 is a top-plan view in detail of the book or laminae pack-holder; and

I Fig. 4- is a like view of the mechanism for vibrating such book holder.

It is, of course, self evident that the disinfcctant of whatever: form would in some cases be deleterious to the health of the operator by inhalation of the same. Therefore, to. prevent escape of the waste vapor towardthe operator, and into the operating room, a housing 1; is supported upon a baseboard 2, whichhousin'g is usually of the substantially semi-circular top form shown in Fig. 1, and is open at the front 3 as indicated in Fig. 2. In the back wall 4 of the receptacle, and usually adjacent to the top is an outlet orifice 5, usually of circular contour, in which is located a suction-fan 6, connected by a shaft 7 with a suitable motor 8, usually electric, as shown, having at the other end of the shaft 7, a gear wheel 9, meshing with a like gear-wheel 10,'usua.lly

of larger diameter, in operative connection with the drive-shaft 11, of the air compressor pump 12, connected by the air-pipe 13, with the air-tank 14, provlded with a pressure gauge 15, and a safety or release valve 16; and supported upon the board or support 2 adjacent to the front of the housing 1, is the holder 17, which may be of any form-suitable to hold in position the books or pack of lamina particularly desired to be disinfected. 7

As shown herein, this bookholderof my invention is adapted to hold in proper position for disinfection, books of considerable variance, in size; and the same comprlses a supporting standard 18, a book-shelf from which extends upward at the center a book back-support 2 0, slightly curyerl, as indicated in Figs. 1 2 and ii, to receive the back of the book, flanked on either side by the binder-board supports 21, which extend backward, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, at the end, and between these supports 21, and the back support 20, the binder-boards 23 (Fig. of the book when in position are passed, so that they will rest against the back-side or face of the plates 21. In order that the inside of the binder-boards of the books may also be thoroughly disinfected at the same time as the leaves, such plates 21 are usually provided with slots, or perforations at, which, however, are only shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The book-shelf 19 has attached to it in line with 20, a shaft 25 pass ing down through the bottom part 2 of the housing, for vibrating thesame, and while I any suitable means'may be usedfor bringing about such vibration, a good and efficlent one therefor consists of a throw-lever 26,

having a pivot-pin 27 passing through a slot 28,'i'n the inner and rear end of the actuating hand-lever 29, vibratorily secured to the'underside of the bottom-board 2 of the housing by a stud-shaft or bolt 30, and it will be seen that by vibratingthe hand-lever 29,the book holder 19 may be rapidly vibrated. "Con nected with the air-tank 14. by way of :1 mp ple 32, is an air-hose 33 in connection with a nebulizing or. atomizing device, comprising acontainerfor the fluidal disinfecting material 34-, which is usually but not necessarily ofthe hand controll'ed type shown, andis provided with a hollow handle 38, to which is attached the air-hose 33,'leading to the compressed air-tank 14; such handle being also provided with a normally closed spring air-valve 37, actuated by the thumb of the operator, by which the flow of the com pressedhir to the nebulizing-nozzle 3 6, and

the consequent flow of the'nebulized disin fe'c'tant to the leaves, etc., may be controlled 7 as desired;

hen disinfecting, the book having'been lplaced in position upon the book-support, as shown 1n Fig. 3,"the'container 84. is lifted by the handle 38, and the valve 37 pressed open by the thumb, and the container then moved rapidly, both horizontally, vertically and diagonally, across the outer edges of the leaves, so as to direct the blast from the neb ulizcr thereof against the same at various angles back and forth, so as to simultaneously flutter the leaves, etc., and inject into, over and between the same such disinfecting blast, which will be driven throughout the entire body ofleaves, and into the remotest. crevices at the back thereof; while at the same time none of the unhealth ful disinfectant will reach :theoperator, as the spent gases of the blast will be constantly removed-from the hood at the back and out through theexhaust-pipe by the suction-fan.

The outside of the back'andbinding-parts are then sprayed in likemanner, and the spray may be thrown'clown through between and insideof the back of the .b0ok,as the suitable pressure in a suitable tank, and

such disinfecting gasmay if desired be used in ifll)l!'l&tl0ll, and to ncbuh'ze a disinfecting liquid, or to air-blast into the part being disinfected a *suitable disinfectantpowder. By the word book as used by me in', the description and claiins herein, I do not intend to limit myself to what are commonly known by that name, as it is evident that the improve disinfecting process and an paratus herein disclosed, maybe applied to and used for the treatment of any -ahd all lcaved or laminated structures, of substantially similar "form and construction, although not properly to be called books.

.lclaimzf or y In adevice of the class described, a support for a book: means for submitting the leaves of the book to a combined fluttering anddisinfecting blast; and means for simultaneously i'vitlidrawing the surplus gasfand nebulized disinfectant by suction.

2; In a device of the cl assdescribed, a support for a book; a hood covering the support; means for submitting the leaves toa 7 fluttering throwing over and between such i leaves fiuidal disinfecting material; .and means for constantly withdrawing the surplus disinfecting material by suction.

ln"a 'device of the class described, a supportofor supportinga 's'ingle book; means 1 for vibrating the support and simultaneously fluttering the leaves; and by gaseous pressure blowing in and between the leaves a disinfecting fiuidal material carried by the gas; and means for simultaneously withdrawing the spent gas and disinfectant by suction.

5. In a device of the class described, a housing; an exhaust-pipe connected with the housing; an air-pressure tank; an air-compressor pump adaptedto maintain a constant pressure in the air-tank; a suction draft-fan to deliver the air drawn into the housing to the exhaust pipe; means for constantly actuating the air compressor and the fan; a support within the housing for receiving book; and a nebulizing device for iultaneously fluttering and disinfecting the leaves of such book or pack of laminae, connected with the air-compressor tank.

In a device of the class described, a housing. an exhaust-pipe connected with the housing; an air pressure tank; an air compressor adapted to maintain a constant pressure in the tank; a suction-draft fan to deliver the air drawn into the housing to the exhaust-pipe; means for constantly actuating the air-compressor and the fan; a support within the housing for receiving a book; a nebulizing device for simultaneously fluttering and disinfecting the leaves of such book connected with the air-tank; and a single motor operating the air-compressor and the suction-fan.

7. In a device of the class described, a book-holder comprising side-supports and a central standard to hold the back of the book, having slots through which. the binder boards pass so as to lie behind the side supports adjacent thereto, and hold the leaves in a practically open position, so that the same be simultaneously fluttered.

8. In a device of the class described, a book-holder comprising side supports, and a central standard to hold the back of the book having slots through which the binderboards pass so as to lie behind the side-supports adjacent thereto, and hold the leaves in a practically open position so that the same may be simultaneously fluttered and disinfected, the back and side pieces of the support being perforated or slotted to permit of the passage of the disinfecting fluid to the back and binder-boards as Well as the leaves.

9. In a device of the class described, a support adapted to hold a book thereon in a substantially vertical fully open position; means for fluttering the leaves thereof; means for simultaneously with such fluttering, throwing fluidal disinfecting material over and between such leaves; an exhausting hood with an air and book-inlet open toward the operator for preventing the disinfecting material from passing to the operator; and means for exhausting the surplus vapor and disinfecting material from tne hood.

10. In a device of the class described, a s pport adapted to hold a book in a substantially fully open position; a nebulizer adapted to produce a blast of disinfecting fiuidal material, nebulized by under pressure, and to direct such blast into, over and be tween the leaves, so as to simultaneously flutter the leaves, and inject the blast therebctween; and means for simultaneously exhausting the surplus gases and disinfectant.

11. In a device of the class described, a support adapted to hold a book in a substan: tially fully open position; a hood, open at the front, covering the support; a hand controlled, movable, combined disinfectant container, and nebulizer adapted to produce a blast of disinfecting fluidal material nebuliZed by gas under pressure, and to direct such blast into, over and between the leaves, so as to simultaneously flutter the same, and inject the blast there-between; and means for simultaneously withdrawing and exhausting the surplus gases and disinfectant from the hood at the rear.

Signed at the borough of Manhattan, city, county and State of New York, this 14 day of June, 1916.

VILLIAM H. RADEMAEKERS.

\Vitnesses JAMES Cnnrsrm, MAXWELL WAGNER. 

